Putting Things Right
by WolfGirl1337
Summary: Bella chooses life over eternal death, forever altering the shape of her future. What happens when you discover your own strength?
1. What Is This, I Don't Even

I'd had enough.

I'd gone without speaking to Jake for a month now. Mono didn't last a month, did it? And if it was just mono, why did Billy always sound so shifty on the rare occasion someone actually picked up the phone at the Blacks' house? I couldn't take it any more. The ragged hole in my chest hurt more and more with every day I spent without my best friend. Worse yet, the nightmares were starting to plague me twice and three times a night, and I dragged through my days feeling like I couldn't get enough rest.

By mid-afternoon on Sunday, I'd finished my homework, done all the laundry, the dishes, vaccuumed and dusted, and even (ick) cleaned the bathroom from top to bottom. As I stared down eight more bleak, empty hours of consciousness, I felt something overflow inside me. "Dad, I'm headed out to La Push!" I called, grabbing my truck keys and bouncing out the door to my truck. I felt strangely energetic, as though my aggravation and worry were fueling a battery that powered my limbs.

It was raining lightly as I hopped into my ancient Chevy and pulled out onto the highway. As I drove, the rain intensified into a squall that reduced visibility on the road to just a few feet. When I turned into Jake's street, the rain had let up some, but it was still bucketing. To my surprise, I saw a person walking out of the road and into Jake's backyard, dressed only in a pair of cutoffs and tennis shoes. I couldn't believe anyone could stand being out in the cold rain wearing so little. As I got closer, I suddenly recognized his profile.

"Jake?!" I yelled angrily as I stopped the truck and jumped out. "Hey!" He turned around and stopped, looking at me.

I looked him over, and was appalled to see the drastic changes in his appearance. His gorgeous, long raven's wing hair was gone, replaced by a cropped cut that made him look even older and harder than his height and physique did. He looked dehydrated, the veins and muscles standing out too prominently under his skin and the sweet roundness in his face almost gone. "You cut your hair?! And got a tattoo? I thought you were too sick to come outside, or pick up the phone when I call!"

"Go away." Jake's voice came out as hard and bitter as he looked.

The head of indignation I'd been building up all the way over here vanished, and I felt like the ground was about to fall out from under my feet. "What?" I asked him weakly.

"Go away," he coldly replied.

"What happened to you?" I asked. He started walking away, and I reached out to grab his arm. "Hey! What happened?" I said, my anger returning. He shrugged off my arm, but turned stiffly back to face me, his face robotic. "Did _Sam_ get to you, is that what's happening?"

"Sam is trying to help me," he snarled. "Don't blame him. If you want someone to blame, how about those filthy bloodsuckers you love? The Cullens?"

I paused momentarily in shock. Jake used to believe that the legends were just fairy stories. Why had he suddenly decided to take them as gospel truth? "I don't know what you're talking about," I lied.

"Oh, you know exactly what I'm talking about," he spat back at me. "You've been lying to everyone. _Charlie_. But you can't lie to me. Not anymore, Bella."

"Jacob!!!" a voice called from the treeline behind us. "Jacob!" I looked over Jacob's shoulder and saw Sam Uley beckoning, his cult flanking him on either side.

Jacob looked over at them, and when he turned his face back to me it was creased with pain. "Look, Bella, we can't be friends anymore."

"Jake, I know that I've been hurting you. It... it's killing me. It kills me. I need... maybe... give me some time or something," I pleaded.

"Don't," he cut me off. "It's not you."

"It's not you, it's me, right?" I asked sarcastically. "Really?"

"It's true," he said. "It is me. I'm not good. I used to be a good kid. Not anymore. This doesn't even matter, alright? This is over." Jake was leaning toward me, pressing his point, anger and despair clouding his expression.

"You can't break up with me," I blurted, then winced at what I'd just said. "I mean... you're my best friend." I was grasping at straws now. "You promised me."

"I know," he said. "I promised I wouldn't hurt you, Bella, and this is me keeping that promise. Go home and don't come back, or you're gonna get hurt." With that, he turned and loped off, disappearing into the dark woods, closest to Sam's right-hand side of all the followers.

I stood for a minute in the pouring rain, unable to feel the tears I knew were sliding down my face except where they pricked and irritated my eyes. I finally got back in my truck and drove slowly back home, the water from my hair and clothes pooling on the seat around me and settling icily in my shoes.

Charlie stared in horror as I listed dully through the front door. "Bella, what on earth happened to you? You look awful!" He suddenly noticed my red-rimmed eyes and wet cheeks, and his expression turned hard. "Did you see Jacob?"

"He told me to go away and not come back. I'm going to bed," I answered, plodding up the steps and into the bathroom to change my clothes.

I switched out my jeans and long-sleeved shirt for my favorite ratty pajamas, and laid down in my bed. My brain felt like it had been replaced with feathers and cotton balls. Distantly, I could hear my father downstairs arguing with Billy Black about his son's treatment of me. "Don't you lay this on her!" Charlie shouted. "She made it clear right along that she and Jacob were just friends!" He paused to listen to a reply. "If you think I'm going to remind her about that, you've got another think coming. She was starting to come out of that depression, and mostly because of Jacob. If she goes back under, I'm holding him responsible for letting her down when she needed him most. Yeah, that's right." Another pause. "Well I've about had enough of your talk, Billy. I'm going to be keeping a close eye on those rez boys from here on out, and if I hear they've put so much as a toe out of line there'll be hell to pay. Goodbye." I heard the receiver slam back into the cradle, and a creeping, sick guilt began to pervade the fog in my head.

My fault, because I wasn't strong enough to carry my own pain. My fault for all the times I'd let Jake hug me and grab my hand. Behind my slowly leaking eyelids, I could see his old smile, his deep-set dark eyes sparkling with laughter and desire and his teeth sparkling white against his silky brown skin. I hadn't been fair to him, I knew it, and because of me he'd fallen prey to that sicko Sam Uley, who fed Jake lies about himself to undercut his self-esteem and keep him in line in his goddamn hall-monitor cult. Now his eyes were flat black, filled with rage and self-hatred, and his finely shaped lips sneered instead of smiling. The way he'd looked at me... I thought I was cried out, but a fresh wave of rejection and anger and anxiety rolled through me, forcing more tears out of my sore eyes.

I thought of the night I'd met Jake again at First Beach. I remembered how I'd flirted shamelessly with him to trick him out of his stories, like the lamest Mata Hari imitator of all time. I remembered the way his slim chest had puffed out when I flattered him, how he'd smiled with excitement and interest as I acted as pathetic and ditzy as I could to allure him. I longed for that sweet, shy boy I used to know, hidden under a massive layer of thick muscle and cynical defensiveness. Sam was fighting with all his power to push Jake down. How hard was I willing to fight back to save Jake from Sam's clutches?

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**A/N: Most of the dialogue in this chapter comes from the movie and the book. It gets better, I promise T_T**


	2. And The Walls Came Tumbling Down

Instead of going home after school the next day, I drove back to the reservation. I parked in front of Jake's house again, going up and knocking on the front door. There was no answer. I grabbed the key that I knew was under the doormat and let myself in.

I swept down the hallway to Jake's bedroom. Jake was sprawled out diagonally on his bed, fast asleep. He didn't even move when I slammed his bedroom door. I shook his shoulder, jostling him into groggy consciousness.

"Huh?..." he mumbled, looking up. When he saw my face, he snapped instantly alert, sitting up so fast I almost didn't see him move. "What the hell, Bella? I told you to stay away from me!"

"I don't care," I ground out. "Sam freaking Uley can tell you whatever he wants, but he can't tell me what to think of you or what to do. And I'm not letting you get away from me without a fight."

"Step off, Bella, _right now_," Jake growled, his hands beginning to shake. My stomach twisted and flipped as a shot of adrenaline flooded my system. My instincts urged me to flee, but I stepped up closer to him, our bodies practically touching. Even seated, his face was almost above mine. What was I doing?

I could feel the heat rolling off of Jake's bare chest, and smell his skin even from six inches away. He didn't smell like BO, but some other strong odor I couldn't put my finger on. _Sort of beautiful_, my mind whispered to me. _Still unbelievably feverish_, I observed. I pressed in even closer, letting him see the agony I felt.

"You don't get to tell me what hurts me and what doesn't," I told him. "Being without you is killing me. You were so ready to step in and carry me when I could barely hold myself together. Don't you get that I'm falling apart because you've left?"

"It doesn't matter. I can't be your friend," he said lamely. He leaned back a fraction, the set of his shoulders relaxing minutely.

My heart was practically pounding out of my chest as I contemplated what I was about to do. I looked into his eyes for a long moment, and watched their expression change from defensiveness to puzzlement.

I raised one shaking hand and grabbed a fistful of hair on top of his scalp. "Fine. Don't be my friend anymore. But don't expect me to go down without a fight," I repeated, leaning in closer. He was trembling again, but with the same emotion as mine this time. Stress. Fear. Vulnerability.

I took a deep breath, then mashed my lips to his. For a moment, I was surprised that the surface my lips touched was burning hot and yielding, but I forced the other sense memory out of my mind.

Jake inhaled sharply through his nose and shifted forward. Then he was kissing me back.

I was burning alive. I was fainting and flying all at once. Jacob kissed me with all the fervor of love and lust denied for months and teased into a frenzy of need. I'd never felt such passion and raw feeling in a kiss before, and the intensity of it broke down the last of my defenses. I pressed myself up against Jake's long torso, feeling the steely, sinewy muscles shifting under his burning skin. He grabbed me by the waist, hard, but it wasn't enough. My arms twined tightly around his chest, and I bear-hugged him with all my might as our lips clashed again and again.

The first few kisses were too angry and clumsy to feel good, but Jake eased off and began to bite gently but firmly at my lips, his teeth carefully sheathed behind his own lips. He sucked my upper lip into his mouth, then my lower lip, running his tongue across each of them in turn. He thrust the tip of his tongue into my mouth, tracing the shape of my lips from inside and flicking and rubbing my tongue. He went back to the soft bites he'd been using on my mouth, nibbling up the edge of my jaw to just behind my ear, then took my earlobe gently between his sharp teeth, his hot breath blowing into my ear canal and sending wild chills down my spine. He bit and licked my throat all the way down my neck, following my jugular, then pulled my shirt away from the hollow in my collarbone, sucking hard at the skin there to leave a mark.

I sighed and moaned urgently, feeling a familiar pinpoint throbbing between my legs. On instinct I straddled his thigh and ground my hips slightly from side to side, feeling the seam of my pants pressing against the spot that itched with pleasure and need. He rumbled deep in his throat when he felt the motion of my hips, moving one of his hands from my waist to tangle in the hair at the nape of my neck and returning his mouth to mine. "Jake, oh god," I breathed.

His hands moved constantly across my back, now gripping my thin shoulders, now a steel band around my waist, now crushing me to him. He slid one hand under the front of my shirt, his long fingers splayed like a brand over my stomach. I began to shake harder, my abdominal muscles fluttering, but he didn't move his hand any higher. His breath came in quick pants, blowing hotly down my throat as we kept making out like we were trying to eat each others' faces off.

He slid his hand out of my shirt and down to cup my bottom, and then he hitched me into his lap. There was a hard, hot something pressing into my privates through our clothes - after a blank moment, I realized it was an erection. The first one I'd ever felt against my body.

Suddenly I was panicking. I pushed frantically against Jake's arms with my hands, my yells of "stop, stop!" muffled by his fierce kisses. My actions filtered slowly through the haze, and he dropped his grip and let me go. I slid out of his lap and curled up on the floor as far away from him as I could get, the feel of him against me emblazoned on my brain like the afterglow of a neon sign.

Jake knelt down next to me, putting his arm around my hunched shoulders and looking anxious. "Bella, what's wrong? Did I hurt you?"

"No, I just... I never... I got surprised," I explained.

He laughed giddily. "You act like it was never like this with the leech."

His reference to Edward speared me through the heart, but I was flying so high that it didn't matter. "It wasn't. He... couldn't kiss me like that. He told me once that if he wasn't careful he could reach up meaning to touch my face and crush my skull instead, by mistake."

Another laugh. "What an idiot. Even if I was capable of something like that, I'd keep my worry to myself so you could enjoy being with me."

"What, you mean like I just did?" I smiled.

Jake's answering grin was even more brilliant than the old smile I treasured. He cupped my elbow and helped me to my feet, then gently guided me back to sit at the edge of the bed. He leaned in to kiss me, softer this time but still firm and demanding. The rubbing of his tongue against my lips brought back the aching desire for more, and I moaned appreciatively. But I also put my hands on his chest, pushing him gently but inexorably away.

"Jake..." I said wistfully. "You gotta tell me what's going on with you."

The joyful expression on his face vanished immediately. "Bella, I can't. Literally."

I leaned in to press a soft, sensual kiss against his pretty lips, and he responded eagerly. "I bet you can," I wheedled. "Please just try."

"I'm serious, Bells," he replied. "Here, I'll show you. I'm -" His lips worked, but no sound came out of his throat. He couldn't even mouth the words.

"Jake, you're freaking me out. Stop it," I said.

"I wasn't kidding when I said I literally can't tell you. It's not my secret to tell, and Sam's made sure I can't go against his gag order. Especially not to you, he said. He calls you the 'vampire girl', and he says we can't trust you," he said. "But I trust you, Bells. I love you. So much."

We sat together in silence for a while, his hand laced through mine. Now that my arousal and the emotional high were fading, a block of ice and shame was taking root in the pit of my stomach. What had I done?

"You know... you already know what's up with me," Jake said thoughtfully. "Remember the first time we saw each other again, that day at First Beach? Remember the st- remember what-" He trailed off, unable to voice even that thought.

"The legend of the cold ones," I agreed, prompting him. His face fell.

"I guess I know why you'd remember that part," he said. "Try to remember the rest. Please?" He looked searchingly into my eyes, as if he was willing the knowledge into my head.

The intensity was abruptly too much for me to handle. "I will, Jake," I replied, "but I gotta go. Charlie's going to wonder where I got off to."

"You didn't get off at all," he joked. "I could help you with that if you wanted. Just say the word."

"Not now, k?" I answered. He nodded understandingly, smug satisfaction and victorious joy radiating off every inch of him. I backed away slowly, working my hand out of his. "I'll see you around, Jake."

"See ya, Bells," he grinned.

Once I was safely back in my truck, I permitted myself to bang my head against the steering wheel a few times. I'd gotten as much as I could have hoped for... but at what price?, I wondered, as I drove off.


	3. That Was Stupid Of Me, Now Wasn't It

Thankfully, Charlie was nowhere to be seen when I got back to the house. I could feel that my face was bright red, my eyes open too wide. I collapsed onto the sofa, overcome with tremors that caused my whole body to flutter. One question raced through my mind, over and over: _What had I done?_

Dimly, I realized that I was panicking. What was I afraid of? I'd gotten exactly what I wanted. I'd staked my claim on Jacob, and proved to myself that no matter how scared and angry he was, it didn't matter compared to how much he wanted to kiss me. _Ah. There's what's scaring me._ I had known all along that Jake really liked me, but there'd never been a possibility of it actually meaning anything, until now. Now I had gotten his hopes up.

I realized that I felt hopeful, too. For all that I was freaking out about my Jacob being brainwashed into a crazy tribal cult, the worry felt strangely muted, dimmed because I couldn't help but see it through the frame of a world that had in it Jake's arms crushing me to him, and his soft lips on my own. I had a responsibility to him now, though - I couldn't expect to pursue a relationship with him either way, but it'd be doubly hard if he was trapped under the thumb of an evil man who didn't trust me.

_So. Sexy thoughts, begone! Let us consider the evidence, _I thought, weighing what Jacob had said to me. _Remember the stories._ I thought back to the day Jacob and I had met as young adults, on First Beach. I could see his sweet, rounded face clearly in my mind's eye, the young teenager's frame, not much taller than mine, that promised at future strength (_but not anything like what's happened_, I noted in passing). None of that had anything to do with the stories he'd told me, though. _Crap. Focus!_ The cold ones were the enemies of the Quileute people, a rival clan, whereas the Quileutes were from a clan that worshiped wolves. I knew the real truth behind the story - that the rival clan was a supernatural family of vampires who gave up killing humans to gain something more from the world and each other.

Was that the connection? Wolves? It seemed so pedestrian. If Sam had revived an old wolf-worship tradition and carried it too far, then why did he have such a strange hold over the boys he controlled? Why were they all so tall and so large? Was Sam drugging or poisoning them to make them more like wolves somehow? If Sam was doping Jacob, why was Billy, the most respected tribal council member, condoning it so thoroughly? I couldn't make sense of it.

I mulled over the information I had while I threw together a quick dinner for Charlie and opened a can of soup for myself. Nothing made any sense, no matter how I put it together. At least I'd made the wolf connection - the one that Jake seemed to place so much importance on.

I heard the crunch of wheels pulling up to the house a few minutes later. I figured it was probably Charlie coming home from the station, so I quickly set him a place at the table and served out a generous helping of spaghetti and microwaved frozen spinach.

"Hey, Bella," Charlie greeted me as he clunked into the house in his heavy uniform shoes. "Smells like Italian in here!"

"Yeah, Dad, I made spaghetti, but there's no garlic bread this time," I told him. "Sorry, I just haven't had time yet. How was work?"

"Had to stay late," he replied. "Two more hikers missing. Bells, I know I've told you before, but I'm going to say it again - no going in the woods until we find out who or what is doing this."

"That's not going to be hard. Hey, listen, I had a long day and I'm tired. I'm gonna go to bed," I said.

"Aren't you going to eat anything?" he asked around a mouthful of pasta.

"I had soup," I explained. "G'night, Dad."

I laid down, my mind full of unanswered questions and unconnected facts that didn't add up. It took me a long time to go to sleep, but eventually I managed to relax and empty my mind.

_Scritch_. The noise invaded my awareness, kicking me out of the deep sleep I'd been enjoying for the first time in a month.

_Scritch_. It was coming from outside my bedroom window. What on earth? I went over to the window and lifted the curtain to peer outside. Standing by the tree outside my window, Jake was throwing handfuls of gravel from the driveway onto my windowpane to get my attention. I glared for a long moment, trying to decide whether I would talk to him or not. As I looked down at him, he grinned and tossed another volley of stones right at my face. They spattered off the glass, and I couldn't help but smile. I opened the window.

"Jake, what the heck? You scared me!" I complained, sotto voce.

"Back up, Bella," he stage-whispered back. "I'm coming up."

I stood to one side and watched, my eyes widening in amazement, as he executed a daring series of jumps between the wall of the house and the nearby tree, culminating in an agile leap through my window and into my room. "Hey," he said, giving me a lopsided smile. His half-naked body filled the room and blocked out the streetlight below. Having him this physically close to me in my private space was overwhelming.

"Jake... what time is it? What are you even doing here?" I asked, sitting back down on my bed. Jacob sat down next to me, gathering me into his lap and cradling me gently against his chest.

"It's about 2 AM, and I missed you," he smiled, tapping the end of my nose with his fingertip. I leaned further into him and tucked my head down. I couldn't help being snuggled like a Raggedy Ann doll, but at least I could keep things from getting scarier.

"You just saw me earlier," I pointed out.

"Any time away from you is too much time," he said. He gathered my hair in one hand, moving it over so it spilled over my shoulder and down my front, and pressed his burning lips to the newly exposed skin on the side of my neck. "Any minute now you're going to figure it out, and that minute is going to be the last one that I get to do this." He kissed the hollow behind my ear, and I couldn't suppress the tremor that ran through me.

"Jake..." I started. "Stop for a second. If whatever this is keeps happening, my decision isn't going to be based on whatever's going on with you."

"If it keeps happening?" he asked, sounding dismayed. His arms tightened around me. "You say that like you haven't decided."

"That's because I haven't," I replied. "I didn't mean for things to get so out of hand earlier."

Jake pushed me off his lap and stood up, backing away. He was visibly angry, so angry his whole arms were shaking. He seemed to grow imperceptibly in size as he glared balefully down at me. "Out of _hand_?" he spat. "Is this some kind of joke to you? You can't just come waltzing in and do whatever the hell you feel like with me, and expect that it won't have consequences. You made a choice today, Bella, and you'd better hold yourself to it... or you'd better not come around anymore like I asked you to in the first place.

"I'm outta here. If you figure anything out, including getting it through your thick _freaking_ skull that I am not your chew toy, my door's always open. Bye, Bella." Jacob turned and walked to the window, climbing out of it.

"Jake, wait, what are you doing?" I whispered urgently, rushing to stop him from taking a leap 15 feet off the ground. He stepped off the edge of the roof, and I watched as he landed with no more difficulty than if he'd just walked forward. I stared, incredulous, as he loped gracefully off into the trees, his footfalls completely silent.

_Well, there goes the rest of my night._ I fell back into bed, and waited for daybreak.

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**A/N: Dun dun dunnn!!! Nnnn! Nn. n...**

**(okay okay I'll stop)**

**Thanks for all the favorites and reviews, everyone! It means more than you could possibly imagine.**


	4. Unbelievable

The sun hauled itself sluggishly above the horizon, turning the world from dark and terrifying to anemic gray. My eyes ached from lack of sleep, but it was too late for me to try to rest. I'd spent the whole night kicking myself for the unconsidered words I'd said. If I let myself relax now I'd miss the entire school day.

Finally, I figured it was early enough that I'd catch Jake before he left for school, but not so early that I would wake anyone up or tip Billy off to his nighttime prowling. I picked up the phone, hesitating before I dialed the number. I counted four rings before a bleary voice answered me.

"Hello?" Billy mumbled into the phone.

"Hi, Billy, it's Bella," I answered. "Can I talk to Jacob?"

"Sure, one sec," he said, and then I heard him lower the receiver and yell for Jake. I waited for a few heart-pounding seconds before I heard the phone change hands.

"What do you want, Bella?" Jacob said, his voice gruff with lingering sleep.

"Jake, I'm so sorry," I said, rushing over my words. "I didn't mean it. I just... I can't take how fast everything has happened."

"Yeah, okay," he answered brusquely. "Now's not a good time to talk about it, Bells. I gotta go. We'll discuss it later, k?" I heard him stifle a yawn.

"Okay. Bye, Jake," I said. "See you later."

"See ya." I heard the click as he hung up.

I was a wreck all through school, shambling around like a zombie and drifting off in my classes. At lunch, the cafeteria crowd ignored me, but I didn't care. I doubted that I could string two coherent thoughts together, much less hold an actual conversation. I just sat and stared at my hands, my vision swimming, and occasionally munched on a piece of bell pepper or baby corn from the salad I'd assembled.

I decided to go over to Jacob's house again after school. It would mean putting off some homework, but I felt like I needed to talk to him about the crazy way I'd been acting over the last 24 hours. I couldn't stand it when we didn't get along - the black abyss that lurked in my subconscious thrived on our separation, infecting me with vague dread.

English was my last period of the day. As I gathered my books together and crammed them into my backpack, Mr. Berty came over to stand by my desk.

"Bella, can you stick around for a minute?" he said. "I'd like to talk to you."

The bottom dropped out of my stomach. "Sure, Mr. Berty," I replied, setting my books down and giving him my full attention. "I haven't done anything wrong, have I?"

"No, no, nothing like that," he reassured me. "I'm just a bit concerned about you. You're one of my most promising students this year, but from what I can tell you haven't made any efforts to apply to college."

I froze, my eyes going wide. "Oh my god, I've been so preoccupied that I haven't been thinking about it at all!"

He handed me a book. "I want to lend this to you," he said. "You're a special and very intelligent girl, Bella, and I think it would be a terrible waste if you didn't continue your education. You really ought to consider one of the schools in this book; you're self-directed enough that I think you would be able to make good use of four years at any of the places in there. Plus, since most of them are off the beaten path a bit, you're likely to have better luck making it in with a late application." He smiled warmly at me, patting me on the shoulder. "Feel free to keep the book as long as you like, but I would like to get it back from you at some point. See you tomorrow in class."

I thanked him and looked over the cover of the book as I slung my bag over my shoulders and walked away. _Colleges that Change Lives: 40 Schools You Should Know About Even If You're Not A Straight-A Student_, the title read, _by Loren Pope_. The illustration on the cover depicted a boy, his outlines wavery, staring into a pool that reflected a clear image of him in a cap and gown. I wasn't a straight-A student, thanks to Calculus, but I was pretty sure my grades were in the top 10% of the class. I was a bit insulted and skeptical, but I guessed Mr. Berty was more concerned by the fact that I was way past the application deadlines for pretty much everywhere than by my academic performance.

I paged idly through the book as I walked out to my truck, noting with interest that three of the schools listed inside were in the southwestern US. I would have to read it through more later, but for now, I had a friend to talk to.

Jacob's house looked the same as it had the last two times I was here, but the aura around it was changed, fraught with the stormy conflict of my own feelings. I loved Jacob dearly. He was my best friend, and I knew now that I wanted to be with him... physically, at least. My heart was the only unwilling player in my internal dance, flinching from the intimacy of being in a relationship with anyone. After the way that Edward and I had melted together so completely, how could anything else ever mean anything to me?

Billy answered the door when I knocked. "Hey, Bella. Can you come back later? Jake's taking a nap and I don't think he should be disturbed."

"Can I wait inside instead?" I asked. "I have something I can do while I wait, unless you could use help with anything."

"Thanks for offering, kid," Billy answered, his creased face brightening. "I'm just heading over to see Harry Clearwater, but if you're still here when I get back I could use a sous-chef. See you later, Bella." He rolled past me, leaving the door open so I could pass him.

Once Billy was gone, I tiptoed down the hall to Jacob's room. Opening the door, I saw my best friend draped bonelessly over his too-small mattress, one massive arm dangling over the side and his knees drawn up so that his enormous body could fit all the way on the bed.

I examined Jacob's sleeping face, comparing it in my mind to another that I'd spent a long time observing. The differences were obvious - the rich ruddy tan of Jake's skin versus the chalky, shimmering whiteness of Edward's, Jake's blue-black hair versus the light golden amber hue of Edward's longer mop, Jake's obvious humanity versus Edward's glorious, otherworldly perfection. Edward had always looked just so from every angle and in every kind of light; he had told me the supernatural force that had reshaped his already handsome face and body into those of an archangel was a part of his vampire nature, another trap for his prey. Jacob had no such advantage, and it showed; he was natural and slightly flawed, his face smushed against his pillow as he slept profoundly. To be perfectly honest, I rather liked his flaws - they made him more interesting, more relatable... more human.

For a moment, I mourned the loss of Jacob's amazing long hair. I had liked the way that he put it back, sometimes in a low ponytail, sometimes just the top section; the way little tendrils worked their way free and dangled in front of his face when he was working on a piece of machinery; the glossy, healthy shine that women paid a fortune at big-city salons to replicate. Now that I had an excuse to touch him affectionately, I wanted to weigh the heavy silken flow of it in my hands, braid it in a queue for him so it wouldn't be in his way. He didn't need me to do that for him, though, because his hair was chopped short and ragged now, close to his head.

From outside, I heard a call like a wolf yipping. I looked out the window into the backyard and saw Sam walking up toward the house, flanked by Embry and two other boys I didn't know. A ball of rage and hatred exploded in my chest, filling my arms and hands with a feeling of strength and the desire to hit and claw. I whirled and ran out of Jake's room, heading for the back door. I flung it open and stalked out into the backyard, angling straight for Sam.

"What did you do?!" I yelled, walking up to him and shoving him hard in the chest. "Hey, what did you do? He didn't _want_ this!" The boy on Sam's right snarled, his face twisting in rage, and started toward me. Sam raised his arm, blocking the way between us.

"Easy," Sam ordered, looking at both of us. "Both of you calm down."

"What did we do? What did _he _do?" the strange boy seethed. "What did he tell you?"

"Nothing," I replied. "He didn't tell me anything because he's scared of you!"

The boy I didn't know raised his eyebrows in surprise, then began to snicker derisively as he exchanged glances with the other stranger to his right. Infuriated, I snaked out my hand and slapped him hard across the face. The sneer disappeared from his face, replaced with a look of absolute fury. He began to convulse, and an inhuman snarl ripped from his chest.

"Paul, calm down," Sam told him. "Bella, step back."

I didn't need to be told twice. As I edged back, Paul doubled over, quivering. Suddenly, he exploded, his clothes blowing away from him in ruined tatters. In his place stood an enormous gray wolf, its muzzle drawn back over tusklike fangs and its huge black eyes glaring down at me. I froze so completely I even stopped breathing.

"Bella!!!" I heard Jacob yell. I turned and saw him sprinting toward me, panic written across his face.

"Jacob, run!" I yelled back, running to intercept him. I had to get him away from the monster wolf stalking me across his yard.

As I reached out to grab him, he took a huge leap right over my head. There was an almighty ripping noise, and I saw a massive red-brown wolf land where Jacob should have touched down. A grisly snarl exploded from its chest as it faced off against my attacker.

Suddenly it all clicked into place. The legends, Jake's withdrawal and secrecy, his strange insistence that I wouldn't want to see him anymore. _Not even human_, I thought. The one person I'd depended on to be my rock against the insanity of myth was himself a supernatural creature.

I watched helplessly as the two wolves fought, tumbling and wrestling away into the trees. "Take Bella to Emily's place," Sam said, taking off his shoes as he ran after them.

"Well, now the wolf's out of the bag," Embry said to the other boy. "Jared, get Sam's pants, will you?" Jared agreed and jogged off into the trees, returning a moment later with a pair of cutoffs draped over his arm. "C'mon, Bells, up you get," he said to me, hooking his arm under my shoulders and propping me on my feet. My knees didn't want to work, so I leaned heavily on the relatively skinny boy as he hauled me over to my truck and stuffed me into the passenger side.

"Jared, you're gonna have to ride in the back," Embry observed. "Bella, you gonna be okay? You look like you're about to spew."

"No... I'm fine," I insisted. My voice didn't seem to want to work either. Embry closed the door, and I leaned my forehead against the cool glass of the window. He hopped in behind the steering wheel and pulled off back onto the highway, driving me into my uncertain future.

* * *

**A/N: Hey all you J/B fans, check out this super cute tribute video I found: http://www(.)youtube(.)****com/watch?v=t4jsbDuPaSQ**

**It's set to the song from New Moon that Bella turns off on the radio when she and Jacob first start working on the bikes together. I didn't make it, but I thought you'd like it. :)**

**As always, thanks for the faves and reviews!**


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